Translation Resources

Some people are your relatives but others are your ancestors, and you choose the ones you want to have as ancestors. You create yourself out of those values.   - Ralph Ellison

Hi everyone!

Welcome to this week's installment of the Welby 2nd Ward Family History Moment!  Spend just a moment and check out this tip to help with your family history.



After you get back on your research a few generations, it's likely you're going to need some language resources.  I have found two things to be of particular help as I have needed to translate documents to figure out what they were saying! 





1. http://www.microsofttranslator.com/

This used to be called Babel Fish on alta-vista.  It is a LIFE SAVER!  All you have to do is type in what you see, and then say translate to English.  Voila!  This has also been helpful in sending an email to relatives or contacts in different countries.  You can type in what you'd like to say, and translate it to their language.  I have found it helpful to copy/paste and re-translate to English to make sure it says what you think it does. 

This could also be a fun thing to use to send a note or letter to missionaries in different languages.  Surprise them with your resourcefulness!



2. Genealogical Word List(s)

The Family History library used to have this great little copied booklets that you could purchase for many different languages that were called Genealogical Word Lists.  They were just a few pages long, but contained a lot of the commonly used words on research documents for foreign languages.  They looked something like this:

English                         Swedish

birth                              födda, födde, född, födelse
burial                             begravning
child                              barn
death                             döda, döde, död, avliden, avsomna
father                             far, fader
female                            kvinnkön, kvinna
male                               mankön, man
marriage                         vigda, vigde, vigd, vigsel, gift, gifte, giftermål, bröllop, brudfolk

etc.

You get the idea.  They have commonly used words, as well as number lists, month lists, etc.  These are great lists to have printed out with you as you are looking at documents.  It helps keep you straight as you figure out dates, months, places, etc.  I can't tell you how many times I would get mixed up on Dutch records between the numbers two ( twee ) and three ( drie )!  Now, you can go online and print them off to use.  Just go to the research wiki (remember from last week?) and type in "Genealogical word list" followed by the language you're looking for.  It should just pop up in your search results. 

Here's the link for the research wiki if you didn't bookmark it like I suggested last week...

https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/

Next week's topic: Starting (or adding to) your personal history

Happy translating and have a great week!! (or... Glücklich übersetzen und haben eine tolle Woche!! in German!)

FamilySearch Research Wiki

In different hours, a man represents each of several of his ancestors, as if there were seven or eight of us rolled up in each man’s skin,—seven or eight ancestors at least, and they constitute the variety of notes for that new piece of music which his life is.  - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Hi everyone!

Welcome to this week's installment of the Welby 2nd Ward Family History Moment!  Spend just a moment and check out this tip to help with your family history.

Want a great way to spend 6 minutes and 8 seconds of your day today?  Watch the following video on youtube!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1u4tBnWJuzI

 

The FamilySearch Research Wiki....  I think the hardest part about it is getting comfortable saying "wiki" in public!  In the FamilySearch Research Wiki, you can learn how to do genealogical research or share your knowledge with others.  This is a fabulous resource for beginner to advanced family history researchers.  The best part is that it explains topics in easy to understand language - and they're short and sweet!  Find what you need to know without having to read very long articles.

 

Ever wondered when they started keeping records in Kentucky?  Ever wondered how to find microfilmed newspapers?  Ever wondered what Lord Hardwicke’s Act was?  (of course it was passed in 1754 in England, requiring that couples had to be married in the Church of England for their marriage to be legal, regardless of what religion one belonged to...)  Check out the Research Wiki for these and many more answers!

Feel a little adventurous?  Want to skip the video and just type something into the search box to get started?  Here's the homepage for Research Wiki:

www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki

Bookmark that page.  I promise if you're not thinking you want to find something right now, you will one day!

Next week's topic: Starting (or adding to) your personal history

Happy surfing and have a great week!!

Family History Television Shows

"Discovering who you are can be an exhilarating and satisfying experience. Discovering who you are can create the anchor you need to live in the sea of humanity. Of the roughly 7 billion people in this world, you can discover that you are, indeed, a very unique and special person."  familysearch.org

Hi everyone!

Welcome to this week's installment of the Welby 2nd Ward Family History Moment!  Spend just a moment and check out this tip to help with your family history.




This week I thought it would be fun to look at Family History shows on television.  I'm sure you've seen or heard of a few of them, but likely not all!  It seems like it would be a great experience to sit down with your family and watch one of these to help teach them about the importance of family history.  I particularly like the ones that focus on ordinary individuals - but there is always the celebrity story if that's your interest!



My favorite by far is The Generations Project shown on KBYU.  The series explores the family histories of everyday people to uncover extraordinary stories.  They cover people from across America, and a wide range of life histories.  There are 38 archived episodes available online, so you can go and watch them anytime!  Pick one out to watch on your next lunch break!  The next time to catch it on TV is June 6th at 8:30AM, 830PM or 11:30PM.

The Generations Project

www.byutv.org/thegenerationsproject

Another show put out by BYU is Ancestors.  This was their original family history series focused more on the "how's and why's" of family history.  The website is a little more difficult to navigate, but the right side of the page has a link to watch some episodes online.  There are also MANY clips on research topics that incorporate the stories of individuals and how they have found family history information.  A good page to bookmark for some research leads?  Definitely more "hard core" than some of the network shows.

Ancestorswww.byub.org/ancestors

Next we have 2 shows put out by PBS.  Faces of America (with Henry Louis Gates Jr.) gives you a view into the family histories of prominent people, and features celebrities such as Kristi Yamaguchi, Stephen Colbert, Yo-Yo Ma and Eva Longoria.  Fun and entertaining!

Faces of America (With Henry Louis Gates Jr.)
www.pbs.org/wnet/facesofamerica

African American Lives is similar to Faces of America, but is focused exclusive on African American history.  Check out Chris Rock, Maya Angelou, Tina Turner, Morgan Freeman and more!

African American Lives
www.pbs.org/wnet/aalives

Need a little Paula Dean, Martin Sheen or Reba McEntire?  This series is probably the most well known.  Who Do You Think You Are started in England, but is now in several other countries. 

Who Do You Think You Are?www.nbc.com/who-do-you-think-you-are

I think the best thing about any of these shows is that it gets you excited to discover your own personal heritage.  Your story is just as exciting (if accompanied by a great soundtrack!)  So put on some music and find out something new about yourself this week also! 


Next week's topic:  Intro to Research Wiki

Happy watching (make sure to limit your screen time!) and have a great week!!

Grave Location Resources

"For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and the living."  Romans 14:9


Hi everyone!

Welcome to this week's installment of the Welby 2nd Ward Family History Moment!  Spend just a moment and check out this tip to help with your family history.

Did you get a chance to check out billiongraves.com this past week?  If not, look it up, and get the app installed on your phone!  That way you can photograph the graves of the ancestors you visit this upcoming Memorial Day holiday! 

This week I have compiled a list of additional resources for finding the burial locations of your ancestors.  As billiongraves.com is relatively new, there are many other resources that will likely have much more information.  They are all very easy to search. I have had GREAT SUCCESS in finding relatives buried in many locations throughout Utah, and many throughout the United States.

Many of these sites contain pictures of the headstones and/or pictures of the cemeteries themselves.  It is fun to see the headstones, and much easier (and cheaper) than trekking across the country!  In addition to doing their temple work, I find that visiting grave sites is a particularly personal way to pay tribute to the lives and sacrifices of those who have made you who you are.


United States Burial Resources:

1.  Findagrave.com
2.  Namesinstone.com
3.  Billiongraves.com
4.  userdb.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cemeteries (Rootsweb)
5.  Interment.net
6.  usgwtombstones.org
7.  gpp.jlconsulting.com (Gravestone Photo Project)
8.  gravelocator.cem.va.gov/j2ee/servlet/NGL_v1  (Veteren Nationwide Gravesite Locator)
9.  Gravematter.com (focuses mainly on colonial gravestones and cemeteries of New England)
10.  Cyndislist.com (not a searchable datatabase, but list of many other useful links regarding cemeteries)


Additional Utah Specific Burial Resources:

1.  Namesinstone.com  (mentioned above, but MANY Utah cemeteries submit to this site directly)
2.  history.utah.gov/research_and_collections/cemeteries/index.html  (One of the BEST from the Utah State History Section
     of the Utah Department of Community and Culture)  Also has cemetery lookup for Utah cemeteries.
3.  Utahgravestones.org
4.  Utahcemeteries.org
5.  www.accessgenealogy.com/cemetery/utah.htm  (Great listing of smaller cemeteries around Utah)


After locating where your ancestors are buried, consider compiling this information in a quick and easy form for others in your family to benefit from your research!  Consider a listing including:

1.  Name
2.  Birth/Death date
3.  Cemetery with address
4.  Plot
5.  Map of that cemetery (as well as portion of the cemetery if it is large)
6.  Photo of the ancestor (makes it so personal when you can visit their grave and see a picture of them!)
7.  A short biography of the ancestor (if you get ambitious! Many times someone you go with can tell you a story that you can jot down for the future.)

I have done a compilation in the past, and it has become such a treasure for myself as well as many in my extended family.  It can help direct you to other graves that you many not normally visit, or provide a fun day trip for your family!  Remember to share your hard work - others will appreciate it!  Please contact me if you want some tips on how to organize your burials information and I can share with you what I've done.  You may come up with a plan that works for you on your own!  Even consider the easiest outcome of just making a list of those you have found which will keep you from having to re-find the information in the future (speaking from personal experience....!)


Next week's topic:  A Few Great Flicks!

Happy grave hunting and have a great week!!

Billiongraves.com

I slept and dreamt

That life was joy

I awoke and saw

That life was duty

I acted and behold

Duty was joy
       -Rabindranath Tagore

Hi everyone!

Welcome to this week's installment of the Welby 2nd Ward Family History Moment!  Spend just a moment and check out this tip to help with your family history.

I'm starting to get excited about our upcoming holiday to remember those who have given their lives for our country, as well as those ancestors who have gone before us.  My children have become very familiar with cemeteries as I have searched out gravestones to pay honor to my ancestors.  With that excitement, I thought I'd share some of the resources I have found to locate graves.

A more extensive list will follow next week, but this week we'll take a look at a new mobile device app called BillionGraves.  It combines GPS location data with pictures that users take of gravestones.  There are quite a few sites like this (without the GPS locations), but this particular company is partnering with FamilySearch to make these images searchable on the FamilySearch website.  That means that you can find the picture and GPS of a headstone as the result of a name search on the church's website.   

SO... go to the website www.billiongraves.com to do a search to see if you have ancestors in the database.  The search is pretty easy to figure out.

Besides using this as a resource to find your ancestors, there are two things you can do to get involved with this project:

1.  Photograph headstones!  You can do this as a planned outing, or just as you are visiting the headstones of your family.  Visit their website for instructions on how to get set up on your GPS enabled phone.

2.  Help with the transcribing effort (much like the indexing project through the church).  The pictures that others have taken need to have the names and dates typed in online.  This can be done on any computer... you don't need a smart phone to transcribe.

I think my family is going to find a cemetery to help out with for FHE next week. 

Next week's topic:  More grave site locating resources!  Get ready for Memorial Day!!

Happy grave hunting and have a great week!!

DUP Histories and Photos Collection

"Brothers and Sisters, do not be weary in well doing.  If you feel your contribution is small or insignificant, remember that the worth of souls is precious in the sight of God.  Our opportunity is to prepare the way, and accomplish the ordinance work, after faithful research, that these souls may prepare for the glory which is their divine opportunity."  Thomas S. Monson

Hi everyone!

Welcome to the second installment of the Family History Moment!  Spend just a moment and check out this tip to help with your family history.

Ever wanted to have more than just names and dates in your family history files?  Here's a fast and easy way to collect personal histories on your pioneer ancestors.  Most of you will find you have many ancestors with histories in the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers' (DUP) collection. 


Who should you look for?  Their website defines those they have histories on as an "ancestor who came to the geographic area covered by the State of Deseret/Utah Territory; died crossing the plains; or was born in the Utah Territory/State of Deseret before May 10, 1869".  Check on your fan chart (see last week's tip!) for those who:

1.  were born in Utah before May 1869,
2.  those who died in Utah as early as 1847 and as late as the 1940's or 1950's (they could have come as children)
3.  others who may not have died in Utah, but died during the period mentioned above who may have come as pioneers, and then left the state before they died

Take those names and search the history index at the DUP to see if they have a history for you!! 

Here's the link to the index for Individual histories:

http://www.dupinternational.org/pioneer_index.php

They also have a collection of pictures of these pioneers.  The index for the pictures is:

http://www.dupinternational.org/photoIndex.php


Plug in those names to see what they have!  If you find a history or photo that you would like to see, you can go to the DUP office (and museum) downtown.  A volunteer will help you find what you are looking for.  You can pay to photocopy the histories, or get a disc with the picture.  Here is their website for location and hours:

http://www.dupinternational.org/

Next week's topic:  Cemetery photo project!

Happy history hunting and have a great week!!

Createfan.com

“No work is more of a protection to this Church than temple work and the family history research that supports it. No work is more spiritually refining. No work we do gives us more power. No work requires a higher standard of righteousness.”  - Boyd K. Packer

—President Boyd K. Packer

Hi everyone!

Welcome to the first Family History Moment!  Spend just a moment and check out this tip to help with your family history.

I've found a FABULOUS resource that the church promotes on their website.  Check it out:

https://createfan.com/

This website will automatically create a color coded 9 generation fan chart using your familysearch account.  Amazingly fast, and a great way to visually see what information you already have on the website.  I find it much easier to see in a glance than using the navigation inside familysearch.  This will literally take you 5 minutes or less!  If you're having trouble logging in, there is a one minute tutorial here:

https://www.lds.org/youth/family-history/serve?lang=eng#see-my-family-tree

Here is what the fan chart looks like:

Some ideas...

- If you want to print your chart in a large format, look at the bottom of the createfan.com website home page for suggestions of businesses that could do a large color print.  Great idea for a mother's day gift for your mother or mother-in-law?  They would be so impressed!

-If you are having trouble logging in, that is because you don't have an LDS account login.  Call or email me and I'll help get you set up!

-If you are logged in, and nothing shows up on your fan chart, (or half of it is missing like my husband's!) that is because your information is not connected in familysearch.  Call or email me and I'll help you get it connected.  This only takes a few minutes, and is the first step in starting your family history on the Church's website.

Next week's topic:  Quick way to find a life story for some of your closest relatives!

Hope you like this fun new tool!  Have a great week!!